Topic: DIY seasonal wheel changeover

[Fobroader]

 

Bring your car over to my place, I'll get my 13yr old to show you what tools you need & then he'll teach you how to change the tires       

 

Psssssttt.....you forgot to mention to bring beer!!!! Da f$%k, thats the key "tool" for a successful day in the garage 

[ktm525]

that jack and stand kit should be fine.  unless you are planning on working on the car all the time, i think it's little overkill 200$ socket set though.  though you can use it forever so it's ok investment.

mastercraft torque wrench has lifetime warranty so it's a good buy when on sale, but they are weak.  i've had to replace mine once already and i think the new one is starting to break now as well.  not a big deal as they will replace it no questions asked.

Yeah, Crappy Tire is really good about lifetime tool replacement.  You don't need the original packaging, or even the receipt.  As long as it says Mastercraft on the side, they'll replace it.

For us old guys they will also replace tools that say Shopmaster (the predecessor to Mastercraft) lol.

[Ex-airbalancer]

WTF
3 pages about changing over your tires 
Open manual, read about lift point

Jack up one corner at a time , using lift points in manual, use  tools provide with car to take nuts / bolts off and on

 

[ktm525]

One corner at a time? Rookie. Most cars have  a "balance" point to lift two wheels at once. The LR4 has a spot so I can lift an entire side. The Ridgeline has a point where I can lift both fronts or both rears. Saves lots of time.

[Ex-airbalancer]

One corner at a time? Rookie. Most cars have  a "balance" point to lift two wheels at once. The LR4 has a spot so I can lift an entire side. The Ridgeline has a point where I can lift both fronts or both rears. Saves lots of time.

We are talking about No-San 

anti seize is this stuff :


they sell this at Crappy tire.  never goes on sale, just buy it.  get the smallest can they sell.   don't get one in a tube, you will run out in 2 wheel switch overs.

this is for the wheel HUB.  not the lug nuts.

I can see him using that the first time , little patches of grey anti seize everywhere 

[HeliDriver]

One corner at a time? Rookie. Most cars have  a "balance" point to lift two wheels at once. The LR4 has a spot so I can lift an entire side. The Ridgeline has a point where I can lift both fronts or both rears. Saves lots of time.

The GTI is pretty stiff: if I use the front jacking point on the side, I can get it up high enough to get the rear off the ground too.

With the Civic, you could almost see the car twisting before the rear wheel would come off the ground. Front would be a foot high and the rear maybe an inch.   

[ktm525]

One corner at a time? Rookie. Most cars have  a "balance" point to lift two wheels at once. The LR4 has a spot so I can lift an entire side. The Ridgeline has a point where I can lift both fronts or both rears. Saves lots of time.

The GTI is pretty stiff: if I use the front jacking point on the side, I can get it up high enough to get the rear off the ground too.

With the Civic, you could almost see the car twisting before the rear wheel would come off the ground. Front would be a foot high and the rear maybe an inch.   

With the amount of wheel "droop" the LR4 has it is crazy how high I have to jack the frame to get the tires off the ground. The full extension on my 3 1/2 ton jack.

[tenpenny]

I do one wheel at a time, you don't need stands.  A proper jack, a breaker bar, those are essential.  A car will take about a beer, so budget accordingly.  I don't think a torque wrench is essential, but it is useful. 

Some chunks of firewood for wheel chocks can be handy, and as others have said, loosen the nuts before you start lifting.  I like to lift on the suspension parts, not the body, as it takes less lifting that way.

Also - a stick of chalk to mark them when you take them off.  Anyone with kids probably has sidewalk chalk around.


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[aquadorhj]

I do one wheel at a time, you don't need stands.  A proper jack, a breaker bar, those are essential.  A car will take about a beer, so budget accordingly.  I don't think a torque wrench is essential, but it is useful. 

Some chunks of firewood for wheel chocks can be handy, and as others have said, loosen the nuts before you start lifting.  I like to lift on the suspension parts, not the body, as it takes less lifting that way.

Also - a stick of chalk to mark them when you take them off.  Anyone with kids probably has sidewalk chalk around.


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Great advice.  Chalk which side the tire came off so you can rotate when installing it back in the fall. 

But best not use suspension components or mounting area for lifting the car for a beginner.  Aluminium suspension components can bend and mounting hard points for lifting is further inward then regular jack points.

on a side note, it is kind of funny that there's 3 page worth of inputs for a simple tire changeover...

[tpl]

Great advice.  Chalk which side the tire came off so you can rotate when installing it back in the fall. 

But best not use suspension components or mounting area for lifting the car for a beginner.  Aluminium suspension components can bend and mounting hard points for lifting is further inward then regular jack points.

on a side note, it is kind of funny that there's 3 page worth of inputs for a simple tire changeover...

Probably because... lots of us including many like me who have never met No-san are fairly sure that he is not a mechanical genius.  Whether he will end up on the Supreme Court in 30 years  who knows... but I doubt we'll see him building race engines in his basement.

However, if he reads all the assorted advice in this thread and then synthesizes internally the core of the information, he will be able to change wheels safely and quickly.

[Great_Big_Abyss]

One corner at a time? Rookie. Most cars have  a "balance" point to lift two wheels at once. The LR4 has a spot so I can lift an entire side. The Ridgeline has a point where I can lift both fronts or both rears. Saves lots of time.

We are talking about No-San 

LMFAO

[mmret]

Honestly man, go to Canadian tire for tools, just for ease of replacement.

I will definitely buy the trolley jack at CT, but for the wrench/breaker bar/sockets, why not get off Amazon? The sockets are only $10 a piece and the wrench/bar are both cheaper and simple - I can't imagine they'll break.  That, and CT, at least online, doesn't seem to have 19mm or 21mm sockets individually - just in a big set.

So the consensus is that a 2-ton trolley jack is sufficient and stands aren't necessary?

Any thoughts on the $40 trolley jack at CT?
http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/certified-hydraulic-trolley-jack-2-ton-0091039p.html

Get a beam-type torque wrench.  They're cheaper, and can't be damaged by forgetting to unload them when storing them.
http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/beam-type-torque-wrench-1-2-in-0588660p.html#srp

Is there any functional difference between that and the other type of torque wrench?  Why would anyone not get this type?

Get a tire iron for breaking nuts loose, and for spinning them off/on.  Use the torque wrench only for the final tightening (once they're hand tight).
http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/motomaster-3-way-lug-wrench-20-in-0091512p.html#srp

Why this instead of a breaker bar?

Or, this tremendous deal: http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/mastercraft-universal-socket-set-174-pc-0589461p.html#srp

With a set like that, you could disassemble an entire lawnmower.  Or replace an alternator in your driveway.  or a waterpump.  Or install gate hardware.  Or take apart your washing machine to diagnose and replace a control module (speaking from experience).  As a homeowner, it's an almost essential toolset.

Does this have a torque wrench?  I.e. would it have everything I need to do the wheels if the only other thing I buy is a trolley jack?

I think I have that one. Its red but otherwise looks identical.

It's alright. Not fantastic but gets the job done.

Really hard to drag it around now as the wheels have rusted. Also a bit too high to get under some cars. Even the V60 I have to angle it a bit.

I would splurge a bit and get a better aluminum one that can work with low ground clearance cars. Some day you will be a partner and you'll have to get that 911. But you'll still be a cheap like me so you're going to do tire changes by yourself.


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[mmret]

on a side note, it is kind of funny that there's 3 page worth of inputs for a simple tire changeover...

I'm convinced that NoSan is actually a master troll.

See: https://www.autos.ca/forum/index.php?topic=98418.msg1264524#msg1264524

[rrocket]

Buy a hockey puck to put on saddle of jack.



And I've been doing this since...well...forever.

Do one corner at a time.

If you REALLY want, I'll make a video (or picture series) for you showing how to do this quickly with just hand tools.

Really, it's not hard...and I commend you for wanting to do this.

PM or text me if you have questions.

[mmret]

Ok so I'm going to ask something here. Most cars only have one jack point on each corner. Nothing in the front/rear.

What if I want to get a stand under it? Wouldn't I have to lift using some other point, close to the wheel but not the "real" point, then put the stand underneath the real jacking point?

[wing]

Most cars have a centre location front and rear.   Very few don't.

Diff,  engine mount etc.

Or jack up the control arm and put stand under the jack point.

Or vice versa whatever

[rrocket]

Ok so I'm going to ask something here. Most cars only have one jack point on each corner. Nothing in the front/rear.

What if I want to get a stand under it? Wouldn't I have to lift using some other point, close to the wheel but not the "real" point, then put the stand underneath the real jacking point?

No. Jack on the jacking point. Then you can put the jack stand on a hard point to the chassis....like where the control arm mounts to the car. It's a very robust part. You could also use a cross member or similar robust point...

[rrocket]

Most cars have a centre location front and rear.   Very few don't.

Diff,  engine mount etc.

Or jack up the control arm and put stand under the jack point.

Yep. But on some cars, getting under that center point is a long way in...and you may have limited jacking stroke because handle will hit bumper

[wing]

Didn't say it was easy

[rrocket]

Didn't say it was easy

I think we need to keep this discussion easy...


Having one of these is a nice bonus...But not required.

http://shopfigs.com/v3/jack_frame_adapter?search=jack